Status: 06/30/2022 3:21 p.m
Chancellor Scholz wants to ease the dispute over transit traffic to the Russian Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad. At the end of the NATO summit, he described Russia as a “threat” to Europe and the alliance.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants a relaxation in the dispute over Russian transit traffic to the Russian Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad. It is up to the European Union to set the necessary framework conditions, he said at the end of the NATO summit in Madrid. The rules should “of course always be determined in the light of the fact that this is about traffic between two parts of Russia,” said the Chancellor. “And I believe that everyone involved is currently trying very hard to establish a de-escalation dynamic here.”
tagesschau live: PK Stoltenberg at the end of the NATO summit
6/30/2022 2:42 p.m
In mid-June, Lithuania banned the rail transit of some goods through its territory to the area around Kaliningrad – formerly Koenigsberg – that are on Western sanctions lists. Russia criticized the restrictions as “illegal” and threatened countermeasures.
“Russia again a threat to Europe”
In his speech, Scholz described Russia as a threat to Europe and NATO. “It threatens the international order,” said the SPD politician. “With its aggressive policies, Russia is once again a threat to Europe and to the alliance.”
The 30 member states decided on Wednesday to increase the number of soldiers on high alert from 40,000 to 300,000. In addition, more heavy weapons are being transferred, especially to the Baltic States and Poland.
NATO ratification to begin later this week
At the summit, the NATO countries also decided to accept Finland and Sweden as new members. Scholz said he does not expect any new tensions in the alliance with Russia with the accession of the two countries. President Vladimir Putin was “unperturbed” by the forthcoming enlargement, he said. In this respect, according to the current status, no escalation is foreseeable. Germany will start ratifying the accession of both countries this week.
That Putin calls NATO imperialist is “ridiculous,” adds Scholz. The alliance is purely defensive. Instead, it is Russia itself that is acting imperialistically. The chancellor stressed that a Russian dictated peace with Ukraine would not end Western sanctions. Rather, Putin should stop the war immediately.
Additional units to protect NATO’s eastern border
Scholz confirmed that Germany wanted to permanently provide an armored division with 15,000 men, 60 aircraft and 20 naval units to protect NATO’s eastern border. In addition, there is the establishment of a regional naval command in the Baltic Sea, he said. The forces would be deployed as soon as possible. After all, the Russian attack on Ukraine showed that you have to be prepared.
When asked, the Chancellor said that the NATO countries were not violating the NATO-Russia Founding Act by increasing their forces. It is important not to revoke these, even if Russia violates them massively. “It exists, it has not been terminated,” said Scholz about the basic file. “That’s right, too, because every time you open it, you can read to Russia what it has committed itself to, namely to say that borders are inviolable, that borders will not be moved by force, that the sovereignty and integrity of States should not be called into question.”
Biden: Ukraine support as long as necessary
US President Joe Biden stated that at its summit, NATO demonstrated a high degree of adaptability to current threats worldwide. “I think we can all agree that this was a historic summit,” he said. When NATO last updated its strategic concept twelve years ago, Russia was still considered a partner and China was not even mentioned. But times have changed since then.
He reiterated that NATO and its member states will support Ukraine as long as it is needed. Specifically, he promised further arms deliveries worth almost 800 million euros. His government plans to make a corresponding announcement in the coming days.
Biden for F-16 delivery to Turkey
Biden also said he supports the delivery of F-16 fighter jets requested by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. However, he emphasized that this was not a return service for the fact that Erdogan had given up his blockade of Finland and Sweden joining NATO before the summit.